July 13, Dreisbach to Trier by bike

    July 13, Dreisbach to Trier by way of Saarlouis (again)

    The Dreisbach youth hostel had Wi-Fi available for three dollars. It wasn't the greatest signal, but I was able to get my email, including one from the Hotel Ratskeller in Saarlouis informing me that I had left my "charger." They offered to mail it to me.
    I needed the charger. I have a Galaxy Note, and like almost everyone with one of these phones my mini-USB charger has gone out, so I have to charge the phone with an external battery charger. So Lucy and I returned to Saarlouis to get the charger.
    We almost made a terrible mistake. Dreisbach doesn't have an active rail station, so we would need to bike to Mettlach, about four miles ahead, or backtrack to Besseringen about a mile.  I almost took the quickest route, but chose instead to bike on to Mettlach. Mettlach is less than a mile from Dreisbach as the crow flies, but as the bicyclist peddles, four miles. You have to bike around a long peninsula.
    The high-quality bike trail from Saarlouis to Dreisbach also peters out at Dreisbach. We were forced to use public roads for a short while, after which a more modest bike trail of hard-pack gravel appeared along the Saar.
    The ride from Dreisbach to Mettlach is simply beautiful -- the kind of natural beauty that is almost a religious experience. I've included a couple of film clips at the top of this post to give an idea of what the area looks like.

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    The train ride to Saarlouis took perhaps 20 minutes. We biked to our former hotel, picked up the charger, and then decided to get something to eat. We ended up having an ice cream lunch. Lucy had four scoops of chocolate. I had a waffle with ice cream, whipped cream, and strawberries. Mine came out after Lucy finished hers, and for some reason she thought I needed help eating it.
    After "lunch" we trained to Kanzem. This was only eight miles from  Trier, so it's not like we were doing an intense day of biking. I'd say we biked a total of 15 miles.
    When we started out the day, we quickly found that our muscles weren't sore, but our butts sure were! For the first few minutes we wanted to quit, but it got better.
    Shortly before we reached Konz the bike trails became more expansive, with the grass carefully trimmed and lots of park benches and so forth. The area along the Mosel from Konz to Trier is heavily used, by bikers, walkers, roller bladers, you name it. Oh, and there are a lot of ducks and swans to be seen.

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    We stopped to snap a photo of a couple of swans, and the big white one marched up to Lucy, stuck its head in the air and honked loudly a couple of times. We interpreted that to mean "get out of my space," so we retreated.
    Our hotel for the evening was again the Park Plaza in Trier, this time obtained solely through the use of 38,000 Club Carlson points. They didn't have the points and cash offer as there was a music festival in town. The festival included fireworks, so we weren't in Trier by accident. I love fireworks!


 

July 12, Saarlouis to Dreisbach: a bit boring, but great bike trails and signage the whole way

July 12, 2013: Saarlouis to Dreisbach, Germany

    After our night in Saarlouis, Lucy and I were ready to start peddling. We headed back towards the train station, and when we hit the Saar River we took a left instead of crossing the bridge.

    The bike trail from Saarlouis to Dreisbach is about as good as one could ask for. For 97 percent of the trip the bike trail runs right along the Saar. It's a nice, wide, paved, concrete, or bricked bike path. The worst that can be said of it is that a few of the joints are a little rough.
    But overall the bike path is almost all one could ask for.

    About five miles north of Saarlouis we came to a river lock and a sign pointing across the river to a biergarten. We stopped by and I had a baguette pizza and a beer; Lucy had ice cream. All of the customers were on bike.
    Lucy didn't know what a "lock" was. Back in the olden days we were taught this is social studies, but today they spend all their time learning about the Kingdom of Mali, which is about as useful as teats on a breastplate (or boar hog).
    The only downside to the Saarlouis to Dreisbach bike trail is that it is a little boring. The Mosel has more villages right on the river, with steep hills full of vineyards. The Saar actually has a substantial amount of river delta land. Of course, learning about these things is what the trip is all about; so if we had fewer opportunities to stop and more to just see farmland, that's what this type of touring is all about.
    When we arrived at Dreisbach getting to the local youth hostel required navigating a large hill. We pushed our bikes and were not ashamed.
    German youth hostels seem to serve everyone except for what we would tend to think of as "youths." They are open to and you will see lots of families with children, older couples, in fact just about anyone. There are lots of groups with younger kids. The one group you don't see much of is youths aged 16-25. I think these "youths" are looking for more of a party atmosphere, even though you can get a beer or glass of wine at a German youth hostel.
    The Dreisbach hostel had a very institutional feel to it, but everything was spotless. Our room was simple, with a set of bunk beds. Linens were provided.
    We had half-board at the hostel, which cost a few Euros extra. The supper consisted a nice salad bar with feta cheese, Kalamata olives, eggs and other good stuff. Lucy and I had a private table, and a bowl of reconstituted chicken noodle soup was served to us (the kind from the box). For the main course they served us a giant fish stick or fish cake and a bowl of potatoes. The fish cake was a bit greasy; the potatoes were in desperate need of salt and pepper, which was not on the table or readily available. Tarter sauce was on the table, but no ketchup. Fortunately we brought a bunch of Heinz dipping ketchups with us, so Lucy ran up to the room and retrieved them. Our beverage was some pretty dreadful Kool-Aid type drink. A great supper, no. But for the cost, it's hard to beat.
    The next morning breakfast redeemed the mediocre supper. There were hard rolls, ham, salami, cheese, jam, and American style coffee served in a "hottle" at our table. It's all we needed.
    Our total cost for one night at the youth hostel was 43 Euros. This included supper and breakfast. We had to be up and out by 10 a.m., but in a way this was a bonus, as it encouraged us to hurry along.
    For families wishing to tour Europe on the cheap, youth hostels are the way to go -- unless you can use hotel points!

Did I forget to mention the ice cream?

    After arriving in Saarlouis Lucy and I enjoyed a treat on the hotel balcony, overlooking an old market area.
    Lucy got an ice cream. I got a beer.
    The regional beer for the Trier area is Bitburger, a very foamy pilsner with a really hoppy taste; more hoppy than Stella Artois.
    Enough of the beer. I just had to share the photo of Lucy digging into an ice cream treat. These types of dressed up ice cream treats for children are common throughout Europe. Lucy is old enough to order one of the more sophisticated ice cream treats, but the kids' ice cream was cheaper and a lot more fun!
    The restaurant had one treat called the Mickey Mouse. I wonder if they are paying a royalty.

Reliving the past -- Lucy and I are retracing part of my 1975 bike trip

    I’ve been reliving the past for the past couple of days.
    Back in 1975 I went on a bike trip that included a ride up the Mosel and Rhine rivers. I blogged on this about 18 months ago.
    Jinny, Ash, Lucy and I recently visited Paris and London, thanks primarily to Hilton, Delta, and Club Carlson points. I’ve been wanting to do some biking on the Mosel and Saar rivers, so Lucy and I stayed over. Jinny doesn’t have much interest in outdoorsy things and Ash doesn’t travel well, so it’s just the two of us.
    Our trip started out with an all-day train trip from London to Trier, with train changes in Brussels, Cologne, and Koblenz. We arrived at about 8 p.m. in Trier and took a cab to our hotel, the Park Plaza, which cost us 48 Euros plus 10,000 Club Carlson points. We should have walked, but I didn't print out a map ahead of time.
    On July 11 we slept late and rented bikes at the Trier train station. The folks weren’t terribly friendly, but they have lots of bikes and sure are convenient. Our cost for four day’s bike rental was 39 Euros each.
    We left our big suitcases at the hotel for later pickup and just traveled with two small backpacks, which fit in a basket on the back of the bike.

    First stop, Saarlouis, about 50 miles from Trier. Our first attempt to board a train failed. It pulled up at the other end of the station and the doors slammed shut before we could board. The second time around worked. The German regional trains have a car in the front with places for bikes.
    We arrived in Saarlouis at about 4 p.m. and bicycled to our hotel, the Hotel Ratskeller. I confess that I had to push my bike up the hill to cross the River Saar. There was a large pedestrian area around our hotel, and we ended up pushing our bikes through it, too.
    Confession being good for the soul, I must also admit that I got a bit confused as to how to enter our hotel. The hotel is on the upper floors of a building, and where I thought the entrance should be was the sign for another hotel, the “Hotel Eingang.” Lucy finally pointed out that she thought “Eingang” meant “Entrance,” and what do you know, it did!
    A bit of history about the Saar and Saarlouis. The Saar was long squabbled over by Germany and France. Saarlouis is named after King Louis XVI of France, who built fortifications in the town to defend it. After World War II, France kept it as a protectorate, and hoped to keep it permanently. However, the citizens were eventually allowed to vote – with 90 percent voting tto rejoin Germany – and the region was returned by France only in 1957, 12 years after the war’s end.
    Saarlouis really doesn’t have that many important sites, but it is as fine a place to spend the night as I have encountered. There are literally dozens of restaurants in the pedestrian area to choose from. Lucy and I found a pizza place that wasn’t too expensive, so we both ordered a pizza. They forgot to cut it for us, but we just cut it with our forks and knives.
    Our plan for our first day of biking is to pedal our way to Dreisbach, a distance of about 15 miles. We're not trying to set any distance records.

    NOTE: I’m just kidding about the pizza. In much of Europe pizza is served as one piece, and you are expected to eat it like a steak or something. Next trip I’m including a pizza cutter.

There's no ADA in Europe, and getting around in a wheelchair is tough; bring help

    We just returned from a Princess Mediterranean cruise with my dad, and I must say I’ve come to appreciate the Americans with Disabilities Act a little more. This isn’t to say that I don’t think it doesn’t go a bit too far at times, because it does, but traveling with someone who is disabled in Europe shows what a different world it is.
    In cities sometimes there are curb cuts, sometimes not. Sometimes doors open easily, sometimes not. In many places it appears to be impossible for someone with a mobility disability to do many of the things that we now take for granted in the United States.
    My father really isn’t disabled in the traditional sense. He’s just old and broke down. He’s 88, almost 89, and while he can make his way around the house with care, he certainly doesn’t trust himself on uneven pavement. And he just isn’t up to distances over a few feet at a time.
    On our trip Dad had the benefit of three sons who could lift and carry his transportation chair. Plus Jinny was along. She’s likely stronger than me, although I hate to admit it. She’s never beaten me up, though, although I’m sure she’s thought of it.
    We certainly planned for difficulties. We booked private tours in many of our port stops instead of just doing things on our own. It added greatly to the expense, but for someone with a disability, it was well worth it, and really is the only option in some cases.

    Some brief observations on touring the Mediterranean with a disability:
1. If you can get a wheelchair with big wheels, do so, the bigger the better. It will smooth out the cobblestones and rough pavement.
2. If you can bring help, bring them, the more the better.
3. If you can afford private tours and guides, they are worth it and sometimes a necessity.
4. Plan in advance as much as possible!

    We were fortunate that my dad is able to get up and walk a bit if needed. And he’s light – I’m guessing he only weighs 140 pounds. So we could easily lift and carry his transportation chair.

Here are our port stops and some general notes.

Venice: Our hotel in Venice was a bit off St. Mark’s Square, which was no problem once my dad got to St. Marks. My brother chose to get there in a water taxi, which was very difficult for my dad to use. He literally had to be stuffed into one of them. I would want to do some research, but I think the land bus to Piazzle Roma and then the ACTV vaparetto to St. Mark’s might have been the better option.

Athens: We booked a tour through Nikos Loukas travel. We were promised a 12-seat van and ended up in a luxury 16-seater. I should note that he charged a flat fee, so if we had added some friends it wouldn't have increased our price. It made for a very easy trip and we rate the company very highly. Getting up to the top of the Acropolis wasn’t the easiest thing, and required going up a rather scary elevator (see video), but we’ve done worse. My dad was able to see most everything.

Ephesus: My dad probably should have stayed on the ship. He went and entered through the exit with my brother, who has bad ankles from an accident and wasn’t up to the long walk. He saw the amphitheatre and a bit more, but ended up waiting in hot weather for us to return. He couldn’t see the Basilica of St. John. There really is very little way for someone in a wheelchair to see Ephesus. It’s a shame they don’t sell sedan chairs, because we could have handled that!

Istanbul: We did this on our own and had very little problem. My dad said the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia with no problem although he couldn’t go upstairs in the latter (and apparently no one in a wheelchair can).

Mykonos: Not much to this port, a waste of time really. My dad had no problem going ashore to a restaurant for lunch.

Naples: Dad was looking forward to seeing Pompeii for the first time, and let’s just say it was tough. This is a place not designed for the disabled, although perhaps a bit more homework would have helped. Also, his transportation chair didn’t have the biggest of wheels; perhaps bigger wheels would have helped.

As you can see from the video above, we did quite a bit of carrying of my dad in Pompeii. The stones we were stepping on in the video are raised stones that were used to cross the streets when the were flooded, which was done regularly to wash away the animal manure and other debris.

There were areas where there were smooth sidewalks, but then other areas hand only rough cobbles which required carrying the chair short distances. We also had to carry my dad's chair down a flight of about 60 or so setps. My dad’s transportation chair actually broke to the point of being unusable in Pompeii. We got back to the ship, and were able to buy another in Naples before reboarding.

Rome: We used Romeinlimo.com tour service to take us to the city and drive us around. With a disabled person, there really is not much other option and we rate this company highly. For the Vatican we also paid 150 euros for a guide, Francesca, who was great. This was the best money spent on the trip. She knew exactly which guards to talk to to get us permission to use the right elevators, and had we been without a guide we would have been in bad shape. The handicapped access points are not well marked. Once we used an elevator that the guards are quite picky about for some reason, but our guide was on friendly terms with the guards so we got to take a shortcut.

Livorno: We made an easy day of it and hired a taxi to take us to Pisa. We were going to go perhaps to Volterra, but we overstayed in Pisa so ended up going on to Lucca. We had a great time and Dad didn’t get too worn out. No problem here, although there were some sights in Lucca that he couldn't have seen, but he really didn't want to.

One other note. There are a few people who just can’t stand the thought of waiting 10 seconds for a wheelchair. I can understand being impatient, but in some cases it’s ridiculous. There were numerous instances of folks cutting us off as we maneuvered about, but one was the worst. In Pompeii we were carrying my dad’s chair down about 80 steep steps. There were people in front of us, so we couldn’t go any faster, but after a while we sat the chair down for about 15 seconds to catch our breath and then started down again. This one woman was muttering that she had to catch up with her group and was attempting to get by us on the side, even though there was absolutely no room to do so as we were taking up the whole staircase carrying the wheelchair. It’s not like we were delaying these people any length of time, but you would think that any person would consider a 30- to 45-second delay in order for an old man to be carried down some steps in a wheelchair to be acceptable. But as far as some people are concerned, you would be wrong. Certainly my experience has taught me to be a little more patient of those who need a little more time.